Explaining trends of premarital childbearing among young women in Uganda
Young motherhood is associated with persistently high rates of fertility and adverse maternal, neonatal and social outcomes in many sub-Saharan African countries. This study examined the trends and explained the persistence of high incidence of premarital childbearing among sexually active unmarried women in Uganda. Cross-sectional data from the 2001, 2006 and 201 I Uganda Demographic […]
Challenges to improve antenatal and intrapartum care in South Africa
The major causes of maternal and perinatal deaths have been well described in South Africa. These causes are related to HIV infection, placental insufficiency and intrapartum asphyxia. The health system failures that most commonly lead to preventable mortality are related to managing hypertensive disorders in pregnancy (HDP), detecting fetal growth restriction antenatally and managing labour […]
What it takes: evidence from a nutrition- and gender-sensitive agriculture intervention in rural Zambia
The Realigning Agriculture for Improved Nutrition (RAIN) project was designed to address child undernutrition through a multisectoral approach which integrated agricultural diversification to improve access to nutritious foods, the promotion of gender equality and women’s empowerment and nutrition behaviour change communication to improve infant and young child feeding (IYCF) knowledge and practices. This paper presents […]
Relationship between maternal body composition during pregnancy and infant’s birth weight in Nairobi informal settlements, Kenya
Background Maternal nutrition depletion during pregnancy compromises fetal programming, and is a cause of adverse birth outcomes. Maternal body composition measurement using direct body composition assessment methods such as the deuterium dilution technique provides better prediction of birth outcomes as compared with commonly used techniques like anthropometry. This study assessed body composition of pregnant mothers […]
Shock index thresholds to predict adverse outcomes in maternal hemorrhage and sepsis: A prospective cohort study
Introduction: Shock index (SI) is a predictor of hemodynamic compromise in obstetric patients. The SI threshold for action is not well understood. We aimed to evaluate SI thresholds as predictors of outcomes in obstetric patients. Material and methods: We undertook a prospective cohort study at three South African hospitals of women with postpartum hemorrhage (n = 283) […]
Loss to follow up of pregnant women with HIV and infant HIV outcomes in the prevention of maternal to child transmission of HIV programme in two high-burden provinces in Papua New Guinea: A retrospective clinical audit
Introduction Despite early adoption of the WHO guidelines to deliver lifelong antiretroviral (ARV) regimen to pregnant women on HIV diagnosis, the HIV prevention of mother to child transmission programme in Papua New Guinea remains suboptimal. An unacceptable number of babies are infected with HIV and mothers not retained in treatment. This study aimed to describe […]
Maternal mortality in the informal settlements of Nairobi city: What do we know?
Background. Current estimates of maternal mortality ratios in Kenya are at least as high as 560 deaths per 100,000 live births. Given the pervasive poverty and lack of quality health services in slum areas, the maternal mortality situation in this setting can only be expected to be worse. With a functioning health care system, most […]
Global issues in obstetric anaesthesia: perspectives from South Africa, Japan, China, Latin America and North America
South Africa is classified as a low- and middle-income country, with a complex mixture of resource-rich and resource-limited settings. In the major referral hospitals, the necessary skill level exists for the management of complex challenges. However, this contrasts with the frequently-inadequate skill levels of anaesthesia practitioners in resource-limited environments. In Japan, obstetricians administer anaesthesia for […]
Sensitivity of hospital-based surveillance for severe disease: A geographic information system analysis of access to care in Kilifi district, Kenya
Objective To explore the relationship between homestead distance to hospital and access to care and to estimate the sensitivity of hospital-based surveillance in Kilifi district, Kenya. Methods In 2002-2006, clinical information was obtained from all children admitted to Kilifi District Hospital and linked to demographic surveillance data. Travel times to the hospital were calculated using […]
Wasting and associated factors among children under 5 years in five south asian countries (2014–2018): Analysis of demographic health surveys
Child wasting continues to be a major public health concern in South Asia, having a prevalence above the emergency threshold. This paper aimed to identify factors associated with wasting among children aged 0–23 months, 24–59 months, and 0–59 months in South Asia. A weighted sample of 564,518 children aged 0–59 months from the most recent […]
